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Philadelphia Area Employment - November 2014

Local Employment Declined 0.2 Percent Over the Year

Total nonfarm employment for the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, Pa.-N.J.-Del.-Md. Metropolitan Statistical Area stood at 2,790,900 in November 2014, down 4,800, or 0.2 percent, over the year, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. During the same period, the national job count increased 2.0 percent. Sheila Watkins, the Bureau’s regional commissioner, noted that the recent decline was the first over-the-year employment decrease in the Philadelphia area since July 2010. (See chart 1 and table 1; Technical Note at end of release contains metropolitan area definitions. All data in this release are not seasonally adjusted; accordingly, over-the-year analysis is used throughout.)

The Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, Pa.-N.J.-Del.-Md. Metropolitan Statistical Area is made up of three metropolitan divisions—separately identifiable employment centers within the greater metropolitan area. The Philadelphia Metropolitan Division, with 69 percent of the area’s employment, lost 16,700 jobs since last November—the largest over-the-year decrease since March 2010. The Camden Metropolitan Division, with 18 percent of local employment, added 2,700 jobs over the last 12 months. The Wilmington Metropolitan Division, with the smallest share of local employment at 13 percent, added the most jobs in the area, 9,200.

Industry employment

In the greater Philadelphia metropolitan area, government recorded the largest employment decrease from November 2013 to November 2014, losing 10,500 jobs, a decline of 3.0 percent. Most of the job loss was located in the Philadelphia division, particularly in local government educational services which lost 6,400 jobs. Nationwide, government employment increased by 0.4 percent. (See chart 2.)

Leisure and hospitality employment decreased by 5,700 since last November, the second-largest decline in the Philadelphia area. Almost all of the decrease was centered in the Philadelphia division (-5,100). The Philadelphia area’s 2.4-percent decline in leisure and hospitality employment contrasted with the nationwide increase of 2.6 percent.

Three other supersectors lost more than 1,000 jobs in the Philadelphia area from November 2013 to November 2014—manufacturing (-1,400); information (-1,300); and other services (-1,200). While the Philadelphia area lost jobs, the U.S. gained jobs in all three of these supersectors.

In the Philadelphia area, mining, logging, and construction gained the most jobs (4,600) since last year. Most of the increase was centered in the Philadelphia division (3,800). Trade, transportation, and utilities added 3,300 jobs, a gain of 0.6 percent over the year. The national growth rate for the trade, transportation, and utilities supersector was 2.0 percent over the last 12 months.

Three other supersectors gained more than 1,000 jobs in the Philadelphia area from November 2013 to November 2014—professional and business services (2,800), education and health services (2,600), and financial activities (2,000). In each case, the national growth rates for these industries exceeded those of the Philadelphia area.

Twelve largest metropolitan areas

Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington was 1 of the nation’s 12 largest metropolitan statistical areas in November 2014. Eleven of these areas experienced over-the-year job growth, with six exceeding the national average of 2.0 percent. The fastest rate of job growth was in Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, up 4.4 percent, followed by Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, at 3.5 percent. Washington-Arlington-Alexandria had the slowest rate of job growth, 0.6 percent. Philadelphia had the only over-the-year decline, down 0.2 percent. (See chart 3 and table 2.)

The Houston area added the largest number of jobs, 125,300, since November 2013. Two other metropolitan areas gained more than 100,000 jobs— Dallas (111,500) and New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island (107,900). Detroit recorded the smallest employment gain over the year, up 12,500 jobs, while Philadelphia lost 4,800 jobs.

Professional and business services led employment growth in 4 of the 12 metropolitan areas over the year: Chicago-Joliet-Naperville, Dallas, San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, and Washington. Education and health services also recorded the largest gains in four areas: Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, Houston, Los-Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, and New York.

Over the year, manufacturing recorded the largest over-the-year loss of jobs in three areas—Dallas, Los Angeles, and New York. Boston, Houston, and Miami experienced no annual job losses for any supersector.

Technical Note

This release presents nonfarm payroll employment estimates from the Current Employment Statistics (CES) program. The CES survey is a Federal-State cooperative endeavor between State employment security agencies and the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Definitions. Employment data refer to persons on establishment payrolls who receive pay for any part of the pay period which includes the 12th of the month. Persons are counted at their place of work rather than at their place of residence; those appearing on more than one payroll are counted on each payroll. Industries are classified on the basis of their principal activity in accordance with the 2007 version of the North American Industry Classification System

Method of estimation. The employment data are estimated using a "link relative" technique in which a ratio (link relative) of current-month employment to that of the previous month is computed from a sample of establishments reporting for both months. The estimates of employment for the current month are obtained by multiplying the estimates for the previous month by these ratios. Small-domain models are used as the official estimators for approximately 39 percent of CES published series which have insufficient sample for direct sample-based estimates.

Annual revisions. Employment estimates are adjusted annually to a complete count of jobs, called benchmarks, derived principally from tax reports which are submitted by employers who are covered under state unemployment insurance (UI) laws. The benchmark information is used to adjust the monthly estimates between the new benchmark and the preceding one and also to establish the level of employment for the new benchmark month. Thus, the benchmarking process establishes the level of employment, and the sample is used to measure the month-to-month changes in the level for the subsequent months.

Reliability of the estimates. The estimates presented in this release are based on sample survey and administrative data and thus are subject to sampling and other types of errors. Sampling error is a measure of sampling variability—that is, variation that occurs by chance because a sample rather than the entire population is surveyed. Survey data are also subject to nonsampling errors, such as those which can be introduced into the data collection and processing operations. Estimates not directly derived from sample surveys are subject to additional errors resulting from the special estimation processes used. The sums of individual items may not always equal the totals shown in the same tables because of rounding.

Employment estimates. Measures of sampling error for state CES data at the supersector level are available on the BLS Web site at www.bls.gov/sae/790stderr.htm. Information on recent benchmark revisions for states is available at www.bls.gov/sae/.

Additional information

More complete information on the technical procedures used to develop these estimates and additional data appear in Employment and Earnings, which is available online at www.bls.gov/opub/ee/home.htm. Industry employment data for states and metropolitan areas from the Current Employment Statistics program are also available in the above mentioned news releases and from the Internet at www.bls.gov/sae/.

Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Federal Relay Service: (800) 877-8339.

Area definitions. The substate area data published in this release reflect the standards and definitions established by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget, dated December 1, 2009. A detailed list of the geographic definitions is available at www.bls.gov/lau/lausmsa.htm.

The Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, Pa.-N.J.-Del.-Md. Metropolitan Statistical Area includes Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, and Philadelphia Counties in Pennsylvania; Burlington, Camden, Gloucester, and Salem Counties in New Jersey; New Castle County in Delaware; and Cecil County in Maryland.

The Camden, N.J. Metropolitan Division includes Burlington, Camden, and Gloucester Counties in New Jersey.

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Philadelphia Area Employment - November 2014

Local Employment Declined 0.2 Percent Over the Year

Total nonfarm employment for the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, Pa.-N.J.-Del.-Md. Metropolitan Statistical Area stood at 2,790,900 in November 2014, down 4,800, or 0.2 percent, over the year, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. During the same period, the national job count increased 2.0 percent. Sheila Watkins, the Bureau’s regional commissioner, noted that the recent decline was the first over-the-year employment decrease in the Philadelphia area since July 2010. (See chart 1 and table 1; Technical Note at end of release contains metropolitan area definitions. All data in this release are not seasonally adjusted; accordingly, over-the-year analysis is used throughout.)

The Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, Pa.-N.J.-Del.-Md. Metropolitan Statistical Area is made up of three metropolitan divisions—separately identifiable employment centers within the greater metropolitan area. The Philadelphia Metropolitan Division, with 69 percent of the area’s employment, lost 16,700 jobs since last November—the largest over-the-year decrease since March 2010. The Camden Metropolitan Division, with 18 percent of local employment, added 2,700 jobs over the last 12 months. The Wilmington Metropolitan Division, with the smallest share of local employment at 13 percent, added the most jobs in the area, 9,200.

Industry employment

In the greater Philadelphia metropolitan area, government recorded the largest employment decrease from November 2013 to November 2014, losing 10,500 jobs, a decline of 3.0 percent. Most of the job loss was located in the Philadelphia division, particularly in local government educational services which lost 6,400 jobs. Nationwide, government employment increased by 0.4 percent. (See chart 2.)

Leisure and hospitality employment decreased by 5,700 since last November, the second-largest decline in the Philadelphia area. Almost all of the decrease was centered in the Philadelphia division (-5,100). The Philadelphia area’s 2.4-percent decline in leisure and hospitality employment contrasted with the nationwide increase of 2.6 percent.

Three other supersectors lost more than 1,000 jobs in the Philadelphia area from November 2013 to November 2014—manufacturing (-1,400); information (-1,300); and other services (-1,200). While the Philadelphia area lost jobs, the U.S. gained jobs in all three of these supersectors.

In the Philadelphia area, mining, logging, and construction gained the most jobs (4,600) since last year. Most of the increase was centered in the Philadelphia division (3,800). Trade, transportation, and utilities added 3,300 jobs, a gain of 0.6 percent over the year. The national growth rate for the trade, transportation, and utilities supersector was 2.0 percent over the last 12 months.

Three other supersectors gained more than 1,000 jobs in the Philadelphia area from November 2013 to November 2014—professional and business services (2,800), education and health services (2,600), and financial activities (2,000). In each case, the national growth rates for these industries exceeded those of the Philadelphia area.

Twelve largest metropolitan areas

Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington was 1 of the nation’s 12 largest metropolitan statistical areas in November 2014. Eleven of these areas experienced over-the-year job growth, with six exceeding the national average of 2.0 percent. The fastest rate of job growth was in Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, up 4.4 percent, followed by Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, at 3.5 percent. Washington-Arlington-Alexandria had the slowest rate of job growth, 0.6 percent. Philadelphia had the only over-the-year decline, down 0.2 percent. (See chart 3 and table 2.)

The Houston area added the largest number of jobs, 125,300, since November 2013. Two other metropolitan areas gained more than 100,000 jobs— Dallas (111,500) and New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island (107,900). Detroit recorded the smallest employment gain over the year, up 12,500 jobs, while Philadelphia lost 4,800 jobs.

Professional and business services led employment growth in 4 of the 12 metropolitan areas over the year: Chicago-Joliet-Naperville, Dallas, San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, and Washington. Education and health services also recorded the largest gains in four areas: Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, Houston, Los-Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, and New York.

Over the year, manufacturing recorded the largest over-the-year loss of jobs in three areas—Dallas, Los Angeles, and New York. Boston, Houston, and Miami experienced no annual job losses for any supersector.

Technical Note

This release presents nonfarm payroll employment estimates from the Current Employment Statistics (CES) program. The CES survey is a Federal-State cooperative endeavor between State employment security agencies and the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Definitions. Employment data refer to persons on establishment payrolls who receive pay for any part of the pay period which includes the 12th of the month. Persons are counted at their place of work rather than at their place of residence; those appearing on more than one payroll are counted on each payroll. Industries are classified on the basis of their principal activity in accordance with the 2007 version of the North American Industry Classification System

Method of estimation. The employment data are estimated using a "link relative" technique in which a ratio (link relative) of current-month employment to that of the previous month is computed from a sample of establishments reporting for both months. The estimates of employment for the current month are obtained by multiplying the estimates for the previous month by these ratios. Small-domain models are used as the official estimators for approximately 39 percent of CES published series which have insufficient sample for direct sample-based estimates.

Annual revisions. Employment estimates are adjusted annually to a complete count of jobs, called benchmarks, derived principally from tax reports which are submitted by employers who are covered under state unemployment insurance (UI) laws. The benchmark information is used to adjust the monthly estimates between the new benchmark and the preceding one and also to establish the level of employment for the new benchmark month. Thus, the benchmarking process establishes the level of employment, and the sample is used to measure the month-to-month changes in the level for the subsequent months.

Reliability of the estimates. The estimates presented in this release are based on sample survey and administrative data and thus are subject to sampling and other types of errors. Sampling error is a measure of sampling variability—that is, variation that occurs by chance because a sample rather than the entire population is surveyed. Survey data are also subject to nonsampling errors, such as those which can be introduced into the data collection and processing operations. Estimates not directly derived from sample surveys are subject to additional errors resulting from the special estimation processes used. The sums of individual items may not always equal the totals shown in the same tables because of rounding.

Employment estimates. Measures of sampling error for state CES data at the supersector level are available on the BLS Web site at www.bls.gov/sae/790stderr.htm. Information on recent benchmark revisions for states is available at www.bls.gov/sae/.

Additional information

More complete information on the technical procedures used to develop these estimates and additional data appear in Employment and Earnings, which is available online at www.bls.gov/opub/ee/home.htm. Industry employment data for states and metropolitan areas from the Current Employment Statistics program are also available in the above mentioned news releases and from the Internet at www.bls.gov/sae/.

Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Federal Relay Service: (800) 877-8339.

Area definitions. The substate area data published in this release reflect the standards and definitions established by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget, dated December 1, 2009. A detailed list of the geographic definitions is available at www.bls.gov/lau/lausmsa.htm.

The Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, Pa.-N.J.-Del.-Md. Metropolitan Statistical Area includes Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, and Philadelphia Counties in Pennsylvania; Burlington, Camden, Gloucester, and Salem Counties in New Jersey; New Castle County in Delaware; and Cecil County in Maryland.

The Camden, N.J. Metropolitan Division includes Burlington, Camden, and Gloucester Counties in New Jersey.